Midtown Bus #32
by Eve2
Summary: A short story about the bus in Resident Evil 2 and how it reached its crashed location. Please R&R. :)


Midtown Bus # 32  
  
by Eve  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:00 pm  
  
On the corner of Blake Street and Warburton Avenue stood Miranda Russell. She was a woman   
of average height, with blue eyes and long blond hair, which on that particular day she wore in   
a ponytail. She stood on the curb, twirling a strand of loose hair on one finger, and glancing   
at her watch on her wrist of the opposite hand. A cold autumn wind blew across the streets,   
blowing the strand of hair out of Miranda's fingers and the rest of her ponytail back, one   
second going one way, the other going another. She shivered from the cold wind and buttoned   
her dark blue jacket. She had been waiting for the Midtown Bus # 32 to go to St. Micheal's   
Clock Tower since 3:30. Of course, with the town in complete disaray with the flu epidemic and   
the strange cannibals, Miranda expected the bus to be a little late, but to her a half hour was   
just too much. It was a long busride across town to St. Micheal's and Miranda had a schedule to   
keep. This wasn't going to help her much. Glancing at her watch again, Miranda began to tap her   
foot impatiently, almost hoping that in some way that movement would make the bus arrive. She   
looked up from her watch and down Warburton Avenue for a sign of the bus. No such luck. There   
was barely even one car on the street. An exasperated sigh escaped Miranda's mouth and she went   
back to glancing at her watch ever few seconds, and tapping her foor impatiently.  
  
Kenneth Carter ran as fast as he could down Blake Street, his feet pounding the pavement   
hard as he went. He knew he was late for the bus, at least by a half hour, but he hoped that it   
was either late or he could catch another one coming by soon. He was supposed to meet his   
friend David, a police officer, outside the police station. The Midtown bus # 32 was the only   
one that passed by the police station. Sure, it wasn't the main entrance, but it one that David   
and Kenneth frequently met at. As Kenneth ran, his breath and energy beginning to wain, he saw   
a woman with blond hair at the corner of Blake and Warburton, the bus stop for the exact bus he   
was rushing to catch. With his last bit of energy, Kenneth dashed towards the blond woman at   
top speed, not even letting the cold wind deter him from getting there.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:07 pm  
  
With a very exasperated face, Miranda continued to wait for the bus, looking at her watch   
every five seconds. She kept this routine up until she heard the sound of someone breathing   
heavy behind her, she turned around to see Kenneth running at top speed towards her. He stopped   
right in front of her and tried to speak. Unfortunately, the spirnting he had just done, had   
rendered him unable to make out a word until he caught his breath. Miranda stood there, waiting   
for him, nearly returning to her routine of checking her watch. After a few seconds, Kenneth's   
breath returned and he began to speak.  
  
"Which bus are you waiting for?" he asked, his voice still sounding out of breath.  
  
"Midtown. Number 32. It's over a half hour late." Miranda replied, sounding annoyed at   
the fact it still hadn't arrived.  
  
"Thank God, I didn't miss it." Kenneth commented, this time his voice sounding normal.  
  
"Why do you need to catch this one?" asked Miranda.  
  
"I'm meeting my friend outside one of the police station's gates and Midtown bus 32 is   
the only one that goes there." Kenneth replied, finally feeling the chill in the air, and   
zipping up his black coat.  
  
Miranda folded her arms across her chest to avoid the cold and tried to smile pleasantly   
at Kenneth, "Well, since we're going to be waiting for the bus together, we might as well   
introduce ourselves. I'm Miranda Russell." She unfolded one of her arms and stuck a hand out   
towards Kenneth.  
  
Seeing this, Kenneth stuck out one of his hands, and shook Miranda's in a friendly   
manner. "Name's Kenneth Carter."  
  
After shaking hands, Miranda returned to having her arms folded across her chest, and   
Kenneth stuck his hands in his jeans pockets. Another cold wind blew down the street, making   
the two shift around in coldness. The two stood there in silence for a moment, trying to keep   
themselves warm with whatever clothing they had. Suddenly, Miranda broke the silence by asking,   
"Pretty cold weather we've been having today, huh?"  
  
"Oh yeah, it sure had, but I heard that it'll get warmer towards the end of the week."   
Kenneth replied.  
  
"The thing I'm more worried about is those cannibals that keep showing up, and then this   
whole flu epidemic going around." Miranda said, this time her voice sounding a little worried.  
  
"Yes, it keeps getting worse each day that goes by. More people die each day, and then   
some of the bodies are disappearing, then the cannibals coming into the city, attacking people.   
It's like our city is falling apart at the seams." answered Kenneth.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:13 pm  
  
Bus driver, Jay Dalton, sped down Main Street as fast as the speed limit would allow,   
every few seconds going faster than he should. He was late, he knew it. Every single person he   
was going to pick up today would be annoyed or angry at him for his lateness, but it wasn't his   
fault. Jay's thoughts turned to earlier that day as he ran one of his hands through his dark   
blond hair and returned it to its place on the steering wheel. Earlier that day, Jay had been   
to the doctor. For days he had been feeling sick, coughing almost constantly, having a complete   
lack of energy, feeling sweaty and hot all the time, and to top it off, his skin was constantly   
itching. Even when Jay was thinking about his day, he had to reach to one arm to scratch some   
of the continuous itch on it. A small piece of skin came off of his arm and he quickly glanced   
at it disgustedly as he shook it off his finger and continued to drive.   
  
"Mr. Dalton, I'm afraid you have the mysterious flu that's been going around lately." the   
doctor had announced to him.  
  
"What should I do? I've gotta keep doing my job or I'll be out of work." Jay had replied,   
worried.  
  
The doctor scribbled some illegible writing on a doctor's notice and handed it to Jay.   
"Just get someone to fill out this perscription for you and try to get as much rest as   
possible. Don't scratch your itching, drink plenty of fluids, and if it gets worse, come back   
and I'll perscribe something more powerful."   
  
"Thank you, doctor. Do you think it's safe enough for me to drive a bus?" Jay asked,   
inspecting the illegible doctor's writing.  
  
"I don't see why it shouldn't be. Just take it easy." the doctor replied, showing Jay the   
way out as he did.  
  
The doctor had taken so long just to see Jay, that he was late for his job. Every single   
person he had picked up so far wasn't pleased to see him. There was a business man who sat in   
the front, keeping his black leather suitcase on his lap, talking on a cell phone heatedly to   
someone on the other line. When he had gotten on the bus, he took a brief break from his   
discussion on the phone, gave Jay an angry glance, paid, and returned to talking. The next   
person he had picked up was a Umbrella Inc. chemical plant worker. Even though the man looked   
deathly sick, sicker than Jay was, he was still able to shoot him an annoyed look as he boarded   
the bus, and weakly walked over to his seat. Then there was the woman and child he had picked   
up afterwards. The little girl the woman was with was crying when he stopped the bus. Angrily,   
the woman explained that if he had been on time, he child wouldn't have been crying like this.   
Jay replied that the situation couldn't have been helped and with that the woman took the child   
and stormed off to the back of the bus.  
  
Now Jay's next stop was the corner of Blake and Warburton. For his own stress level, he   
hoped that there would be no one there at the stop so he could go on his way without more   
people looking at him annoyed or angry. Jay adjusted his light blue bus driver's uniform with   
one hand, while the other still drove. After fixing a stray button on his shirt, his hand once   
again returned to the steering wheel as he rounded the corner quickly onto Warburton. Jay   
sighed sadly when he saw two figures waiting at the distant corner. It was going to be a long   
day for him.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:15 pm  
  
At long last, the bus had arrived for Miranda and Kenneth. It slowly halted to a stop and   
with a hissing sound, the doors opened. Miranda got on first, looking at Jay angrily. He just   
look backed apologetically and asked her for the fee to ride. Grudgingly, Miranda paid and   
walked towards an empty seat. Expecting another angry rider, Jay prepared another apologetic   
face. Instead he saw Kenneth with a look of relief that he had made the bus. This made Jay's   
face lighten up a bit as Kenneth paid and took his seat next to Miranda. Jay closed the doors,   
the hissing sound returning again, and with exhaust fumes eminating from the muffler in the   
back, the bus pulled from the curb and headed down the street. The only thing left a black   
cloud of smoke.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:20 pm  
  
Kenneth and Miranda sat in silence as the bus drove down Greene Street, heading towards   
the police station first. The only sounds in the bus coming from the business man in the front,   
yelling into his cell phone, the woman comforting the child in the back, and the sick man   
breathing heavily and coughing repeatedly. Even Jay coughed every now and then. Other people on   
the bus sat reading, listening to music, or staring out the windows. It wasn't exactly silence,   
but it felt like it. Almost as if time was going by incredibly slowly, each second feeling like   
an hour. The sick man behind the two kept coughing constantly, a deep throaty cough that would   
make you expect he was coughing up blood. The man took out a tissue from his coat pocket and   
blew his nose with it. He then crumpled the tissue up, and began to scratch his arms quickly.   
This whole ritual disturbed Miranda a bit, not wanting to be so close to someone who was sick   
with this strange flu. But, there was no where else to move to at the moment, and she didn't   
want to ask Kenneth to get up, seeing as she was in the window seat. Hesitantly, Miranda   
ignored the sick man's noises and stared at the blurry buildings as they sped past.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:26 pm  
  
The two still sat in silence as the bus rounded another corner, coming closer to the   
police station with every second that went by. The sick man behind them had stopped coughing,   
and seemed that he had fallen asleep, or passed out. The woman next to him paid no attention to   
this, just relieved that he was no longer coughing. Miranda was relieved that the noise had   
stopped too. The coughing had been a bit more than disturbing and this sudden stop came as a   
nice change of pace. Kenneth broke the silence finally by asking Miranda a question.  
  
"Where are you getting off?"   
  
Miranda turned her head from the window and looked back at Kenneth. "Saint Micheal's   
Clock Tower. I work there. Kinda a tour guide of some sort."   
  
"Ah, cool." Kenneth replied, and again the silence had returned.  
  
"Who are you meeting at the police station?" Miranda asked.  
  
"He's a police officer, and I promised I'd take him out to dinner. With all the stuff   
that's been going on, he needs it." answered Kenneth.  
  
"Do you always meet at the police station?" Miranda tried to keep the silence from coming   
back with just some simple questions. Anything to keep the uncomfortable silence away.  
  
"Yeah, it's kinda like a tradition. We always meet outside the side gate at the station."   
explained Kenneth.  
  
A loud cough from Jay at the front made the two jump a little. This sudden cough had   
interupted their conversation, the silence once again creeping back. This time, it didn't stay   
for quite as long.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:32 pm  
  
"Oh my God! The man is dead!" a woman screamed from behind Miranda and Kenneth.  
  
The sick man had appearantly stopped breathing and died completely. In one instant, panic   
attacked the bus furiously. Even the business man had stopped talking on his cell phone and   
stared with wide eyes at the sick, dead man. Miranda and Kenneth both got up and stood in the   
aisle, next to the woman who had been in the seat next to the man's. Jay had heard this, but it   
didn't register in his head. He was completely engulfed with getting to the next stop before he   
keeled over from feeling bad. Everyone in the bus was beginning to act crazy, some were   
screaming, others were nearly about to crawl out the windows, but everthing stopped when they   
heard something coming from the dead man.  
  
His eyes glazed over, looking cataracted, the skin he had been scratching had fallen off,   
revealing muscles and bloody spots, siliva dripping from his mouth. The man slowly rose to his   
feet, staring hungrily at the woman in front of him. She screamed loudly, the sound bouncing   
off the entire bus interior. The next few moments passed in what seemed like an eternity. The   
dead man lunged at the woman, grabbing her and biting her on the neck. Blood flowed from the   
bite, a whole chunck of her skin taken off by the man's teeth. Another scream esaped her mouth,   
this time one of pain. The man continued his biting, taking time inbetween to chew the skin and   
muscle he had bitten off. The gooshing sound from the chewing caused one person to vomit right   
on the floor of the bus, while everyone else stood completely still in shock.   
  
Even this horrific event didn't reach Jay's concious mind as he sped faster down the   
street. The police station just out of reach. He sped faster and faster, the speed limit   
meaning nothing, his mind a complete blank. The itching was becoming unbearable for him, and it   
was almost as if he was trying to outrun it by driving faster. His concious mind was slipping,   
his fever reaching an all time high, his pulse slowing. The flu he had was now not only worse,   
it was life threatening. Thoughts in his mind slowly turned to only a few words, chanted an   
reapeated over and over again, "Food...hungry...eat... itchy...food..." Jay's foot fell on the   
gas pedal with all its strength, making the bus lurch forward with incredible speed.   
  
Some people noticed the bus' increase in speed, but most were concentrated on the dead   
man feasting on the woman's body. It was so horrific most couldn't turn away, but then the dead   
man turned towards Kenneth, his eyes with a look of hunger. Kenneth tried to back away, but he   
bumped into one of the seats and fell into it. This gave the dead man the right opprotunity to   
sink his teeth into Kenneth's nearby arm. He let out one, long, painful scream as the dead man   
chewed and knawed on his body.  
  
Jay's slipping conciousness, with the continuing chant of the four same words, was still   
going on as the bus sped farther down the street, now just passing the police station's side   
gate.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:38 pm  
  
Everything had happened in one moment, suddenly. The break of everything happening in   
slow motion was like someone throwing a ball through a window. Every single person on the bus   
began to scream as the dead man continued to devour Kenneth. Then Miranda looked towards the   
front of the bus. She screamed in terror, her scream louder than everyone else's.  
  
"We're going to crash!" was what she yelled next.  
  
The bus was heading right towards two other cars that had just crashed into each other   
and it seemed like the bus driver wasn't going to slow down. The next moment the bus rammed   
into the cars, everyone flying across the bus. Glass shattered, metal crunched, and everything   
went dark.  
  
September 25th, 1998 4:40 pm  
  
The Midtown Bus # 32 had crashed into two other crashed cars. Not a single person had   
survived the incident. Jay was slumped over the steering wheel, blood oozing from his forehead.   
Miranda was dead in the aisle, her head having hit the floor too hard. Everyone else had been   
killed from the impact. Silence consumed the bus at last. Real silence. There was no more   
crying child, no more business man yelling into his cell phone, no more talking from anyone.   
The dead man was still on the floor for a few seconds. Then...a twitch from the dead man's   
hand. Another twitch, and another. Slowly the dead man rose to his feet, stumbling down the   
aisle aimlessly. Then a soft moan was heard in the back, the woman who the dead man had killed   
was on the floor, now just like him. She moaned as she pulled herself across the floor by her   
arms. The only moving people left on Midtown Bus # 32 were the dead man, and the woman he had   
killed. The walking undead, waiting for more food to come along.  
  
  
  



End file.
